Forever is Nothing
by astrum-faith
Summary: The Doctor was left heartbroken after saying goodbye, but he'd forgotten one thing: he's a Time Lord, and for them anything is possible. Won't stay one-shot - be patient, okay?
1. Never and Forever

_Forever_.

That was how long she had wanted to be with him - she'd told him so herself.

_Never say never ever..._

Those were his words, his caution when...when she said she'd never leave.

Now those words were entwined in one cold, solid fact: He was separated from her forever, he could never see her again. And it hurt, not just emotionally but physically too; it hurt him to know she was gone forever.

After all, forever was a long time.

Never was final.

The words ran through his head over and over..._forever_..._never_..._forever_..._never_...

Again and again he tried to forget, to rid his mind of the plague that burned inside.

But then would every time he stop trying. Every time he forced himself to remember again.

Because if he forgot those words he would forget her, and that was even worse than remembering.

Late at night the TARDIS would be filled with a sound more alien than anything it had ever faced before in its eternity of existence: the sound of the Doctor crying.

He would lie there in his room or sit in the library or even lean against the inside of the doors of the TARDIS itself, tears running down his cheeks; the Oncoming Storm would let the rains fall in his heartache. And every morning he would wake up and find himself outside her room, knowing that he had wandered to that place the night before. That pilgrimage to her door was inevitable.

But he never went in. He had, once, the first time it had sunk in that she was gone. He had been to see it for himself, thinking it might help. But no matter how many happy memories were stored within those four walls, his hearts filled with the greatest sorrow he had ever dared imagine, greater even than what he had felt after the time war. After that he had resolved never to enter, but to preserve it, to preserve her memory in the only way he could.

* * *

Then, six months after that painful goodbye on the beach of Dårlig Ulv Stranden, something changed. The whispered words began to fade away.

The Doctor had done nothing, but the words _were_ going, slipping out of his mind like water slipping out of the hands of a child.

Confused and worried, desperate not to forget the words, the sound of his love's voice, the Doctor turned to his ship for comfort.

That night the tears never came, but in their place there dawned a new realisation.

The words echoed within the TARDIS walls as the ship spoke to him, reminding him of something important:

It wasn't '_never'_, it was '_never say never ever'_.

And forever is nothing for a time lord.

The Oncoming Storm could do anything, and he knew it.

* * *

**Please review - no flaming (flaming is pointless because unless you tell me how to improve the work it will never get better). **


	2. Oncoming Storm

An Answer

The Doctor approached the TARDIS console purposefully but slowly. In other circumstances he would have spoken to his ship or, in the very least, run a caring hand over the familiar surface. Now he did neither.

He had one purpose, one intention, and he knew the TARDIS would understand being ignored - he needed his whole mind, every ounce of Time Lord intellect, and something… more.

It wasn't like the Bad Wolf, but the Doctor still knew he possessed something within him more powerful than even those who had given rise to the name 'Oncoming Storm' had witnessed.

Solid yet fluid, his hands touched the console, not quite holding on, but not pushing away either. His body leaned forwards, his feet adjusting without him thinking about it. A slow, steady breath in and out, the sound echoing around the empty ship, and he was ready.

Gallifreyan symbols flickered across the screens, off the walls and in his mind - the Doctor reached through his own past, the TARDIS allowing the vortex within her to follow him back. He found the moment, the one millisecond in which, out of all Time, defined him most, and seized it.

He was a child again, eight years old, staring into eternity. All possibilities, what was, is and ever could be, loomed before him. It had terrified him then, but now he saw those possibilities as opportunities.

The Doctor drew upon the power of himself and eternity as he willed his own desired destiny into being. He felt the TARDIS as she wove the future alongside him, tying up the threads carefully, cutting away any knots or tangles, dangers the Time Lord had overlooked in his haste to reach the other end of the Timeline.

_Stop_, the TARDIS commanded. _You cannot decide her fate. She must be permitted a life of her own._

And the Time Lord conceded. Threads, a thousand silver and gold strands reflecting rainbows from nothing, fell loose as he left that final knot undone.

For the first time he could remember, the TARDIS's voice left him - his mind felt empty, but he told himself what she would be doing. He just prayed his ship would convince the girl to come home.

* * *

A howl flooded the rooms, the corridors, echoing a hundred times from a hundred surfaces, piercing the air like a shower of poison arrows.

Cautiously, the Doctor turned around as he felt the ship nudging at his mind. He gasped. The woman before him was even more beautiful than he remembered, and even he had to admit that his memory had held her like a goddess. Now her hair was longer, reminiscent of how it had looked when they first me, only now he was able to admire the blonde-brown streaks without fear that he was staring. Her eyes, on the other hand, they hadn't changed since that day, their last goodbye, that time on the beach at Dålig Ulv Stranden. There were tears in there, of course, but he was also pleased to see, gazing deeper, that the fire had not faded from her either.

"You jus' gonna stand there or what?" she asked with that smile reserved especially for him. He barely noticed her grin, though - his eyes were blurred with tears. How many nights had he dreamt of her voice? It sounded as if it now flowed from angel's lips, and if he could have seen it, a solid sound-wave, he was sure it would be shimmering like silver.

"You have no idea…" he managed to utter before sobs cut him off. Her arms were around him in an instant, his instinctively encircling her warm, soft, human body.

"I missed you too," she reassured him. After a few minutes they pulled back, never losing eye-contact. "You did something terrible to make this happen, Doctor."

"I know, but I would do it again. I can't believe you agreed, though. Your family, the baby…"

"Torchwood seven trying to prove I'm not human…"

"What?!"

"Just rumours - someone overheard something about Bad Wolf, maybe…"

"Or Torchwood House."

"Yeah. Anyway, I'd have given up almost anything to be with you."

"Almost?" he asked, raising his eyebrows, curiosity shining through his false hurt.

"Yeah, well, if some monster was tryin' to destroy the universe I'd have to stop him first, wouldn't I? It's what we do."

"We?" The Doctor questioned, a loving look glittering in his eyes.

"We," Rose answered softly, also aware of how small the space between them was. Slowly he leaned forwards, her mirroring him, so their lips met in the middle of that small gap. They moved closer, their bodies fitting together perfectly, like two pieces of a puzzle finally complete.

"I love you, she whispered between kisses.

"I love you more," the Doctor replied, certain that no one could ever reflect the raw emotion burning through his beating hearts.

* * *

Okay, so what do you think? I know this wasn't originally going to be a reunion fic, but someone wanted me to continue it, so I did. If you're going to flame, at least give me some tips about my writing as opposed to my choice of characters, etc. Okay?

Please REVIEW!!! :)


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